SENSE OF PLACE

If it's authenticity and adventure that you crave, you've come to the right place

- By Coco Marett

For those with an appetite for the unknown, these hotels—all of which were featured in Tatler Asia's 100 Best Hotels list in 2024—offer guests the opportunity to fully immerse themselves in some truly remarkable destinations.

Imagine waking up to morning mist rising over 1,300-year-old temples, riding horses with local herdsmen in the vast expanse of Mongolia's Orkhon Valley or engaging in an intimate discussion with monks at a monastery in the Himalayas. These hotels are luxurious reminders of what travel is all about: getting lost, tapping into childlike curiosity and learning something about the world and the wonderful people in it.

SIX SENSES THIMPHU

It's no surprise this hotel won the 2024 Tatler Best of Asia Best Destination Hotel award. Set within apple orchards and pine forests, with its grand dzong fortress-inspired design and outdoor ponds reflecting the Himalayan clouds above, Six Senses Thimphu is a palace in the sky. Designed in collaboration with Thai studio Habita Architects, the hotel comes with an ethos grounded in simplicity and harmony, expressed through the use of local materials such as hemlock wood and ashlar stone.

There are 25 spacious villas and suites, with floor-to-ceiling windows and decks that allow guests to take in the towering peaks, quiet valleys and flowing rivers—views that can also be enjoyed from the baths and private pools that feature in some of the lodges. Guests can further immerse themselves in the majestic settings with yoga in the pavilion, local cuisine made from organic ingredients and leisurely strolls through the woods to ancient monasteries. The Talakha Monastery, a hidden gem rarely visited by foreigners, is an hour's hike away, and the hotel can arrange intimate talks with the resident monks, as well as tree-planting activities.